Take a focused approach, don’t jump from subject to subject or topic to topic Try to relax but avoid daydreaming Don’t doubt yourself or your ability to get the work done Focus on a positive outcome and that’s what you will get Allow yourself regular breaks to recharge the batteries Make sure you get enough [...]
If you haven’t tried flash cards or MindMaps as an aide de memoire, try using them now. Consider using mnemonics to help you remember detail. Whether it is a useful rhyme, phrase or even a song, these quirky techniques are an excellent way to recall parts of a certain topic; and you needn’t worry about [...]
Night-before Rituals: Scan through all of the shorthand notes you have prepared If you haven’t already done so, look through past exam papers and decide roughly how much time you will spend on each section When it comes to subjects like history for example, where many essay questions are asked, it is worth writing out [...]
Forget about everything other than the tasks you have set yourself for each individual study session Plan by way of goals and not time. It is not useful to say to yourself that you are going to be sitting there for 4 or 5 hours. Instead focus on your goals for each study session Don’t [...]
Schedule your study session. If it is pre-planned it will be much more effective. Be disciplined. Don’t run over time on certain subjects at the expense of others Use shorthand notes, flashcards or Mindmaps and avoid going back to read text books Study while you are fresh and don’t wait until you are nodding off [...]
Get daily exercise to allow you to eradicate tension before you start your work. I wouldn’t advise anyone to engage in any sort of strenuous or particularly draining sports activities before studying. This would mean that you are beginning or resuming a study session in a tired state of mind. I would recommend walking as [...]
Mindmaps might be considered to be shorthand for all the material covered in the text books and in class. They are a pretty good summary of all you need to know to get excellent exam results. They are visual in nature and therefore are easy to remember and recall for the vast majority of students. [...]
Checklist of Practical Things for the Exams: Pens: I would advise any student to have a good stock of new and functioning pens with them as they enter their exam centre. Remember all pens need backups! They can waste unexpectedly at any point in time and you don’t want to be scribbling frantically all over [...]
Turn off the TV. This may seem like a bit of an obvious tip but for those of us who enjoy a regular instalment of a program every day or week, it might seem a bit unreasonable. If you happen to feel that your program of choice cannot be missed, catch a rerun, take advantage [...]
Yes, they have finally arrived. After 6 months of taking my own handwritten Biology Mind Maps and turning them into electronic versions I can share with other Leaving Cert students, Biology Mind Maps finally went on sale on www.leavingcertmindmaps.ie yesterday. Creating them was a massive challenge because of the necessity to create original artwork to [...]
